2014 was first full year where I considered trail-running (or running at all) my primary hobby. Excited about the prospects of what I hoped to accomplish, I set the goals of running 500 miles and climbing 75,000 ft. At the time, it seemed like a lot. I still don’t like running, per se, and am primarily motivated by the excitement of exploring new places and challenge of doing hard things. Compared to my ultra-marathon friends, 500 miles is probably laughable.

So, how did I fare? I ended with 425 miles and over 81,000 ft. climbed.  I was 75 miles short. Yarg! I partly blame February – where I didn’t run much at all due to a stress fracture on my left ankle. Truth be told, my mileage from January-April was less that I had hoped as the injury continued to plague me and I was worried about aggravating it and ruining my summer running plans. On the flip-side, I did beat my climbing goal.

I had also set the goal to summit the 3 highest peaks in Davis County (from the valley floor) – Thurston, Francis, and Bountiful Peaks. Which I did. I also pushed my “longest run ever” from 13.1 to 16+ to 20 to 29.  I ran in the Zion Trail Ragnar and Wasatch Back Ragnar (ugh!) but look forward to some non-Ragnar trail races in the near future. I am pleased that I don’t think twice about going out for a 10-20 miler in the mountains.

Here is what I propose for 2015:

• 500 miles
• 100,000 ft. elevation gain
• Summit Timpanogos and Box Elder peaks in Utah County, Olympus and Lone Peak in Salt Lake County.
• Complete one of the Farmington 50 Mile or Marathon Challenges
• Run a 50k (already scheduled for June – Bryce 50k)
• Run other non-race marathons and 50ks – just as adventure runs.

Why the repeat mileage goal? Well, running still isn’t a part of my daily routine. I don’t love simply putting in miles (on pavement), and I don’t want a mileage goal to force me to spending what precious free time I have out clocking miles on the road just to hit the goal. Moreover, I think it has been some of those road miles (attempting to keep up with my goal pace last year in January) that really aggravated my stress fracture and put me out for a while. I would rather be motivated by goals to summit peaks, explore new places, hit new distance PRs, etc…